Hungry Valley Moon Rocks Four Wheeling - Madness At Moon Rocks

In a relatively short period of time, Rich Klein, the founder of CalROCS, has made a lasting impression on the world of extreme rockcrawling events. The series' most recent success was Madness at Moon Rocks, which was held in Nevada at the Hungry Valley OHV park. As always, CalROCS ran three classes: modified stock, pro modified, and unlimited, which opens up the field of competition to a wide range of vehicles and drivers.

In short, just about anyone can compete.On Saturday morning, the crowds were already gathering to witness the event. The courses were all marked out and the competition began. To give spectators a chance to safely watch the action, a yellow-tape boundary was established, both above and to the sides of the courses. This allowed for a fantastic view of the whole event without placing anyone in harm's way. With 75 competitors in attendance, it was clear that the only way to get them through all eight courses would be to stagger the starts, so a half dozen rigs started at eight different courses to kick off the day. The courses proved to be very challenging for the rigs, drivers, and spotters. There were several rollovers and breakdowns, although no one suffered so much as a scratch. The courses were so diverse that by the end of the day, no one was sure who had made it to the next round.

After the last rig had finished on Saturday night and the points were totaled, the names of those who had made it to the next round were announced at the Reno Hilton that night. The rules that CalROCS abides by are the same as those used by RCCA. The goal is to accumulate as few points as possible. The 10 teams with the lowest scores advanced to the final round on Sunday.

When dawn broke the next morning, the finalist's were lined up at the gates for the first of six new courses, and the spectator area was packed. Several of the obstacles looked like they would be impossible to traverse, and it made many people wonder what course designer Bob Rogue was thinking when he designed them. However, the competitors were up to the challenge, and most of them successfully conquered the courses. With all of the action, the crowd often went wild with excitement as rigs attempted the seemingly impossible. Men, women, and children of all ages rooted and yelled, often pouring out advice about what lines to take and which strategy to adopt. Apparently armchair quarterbacks abound in every sport!

As the day came to a close and the last competitor rumbled across the finish line, both the crowds and drivers seemed spent. Adrenaline was still running high with the all-out nature of these events, but as everyone began winding down, what they all wanted to know was who had come out on top.